TheKnowledgeSocietyAccordingto-优题课

四．阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）
A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms, though my teacher emphasized the importance again and again. But soon, the importance of English idioms was shown in an amusing experience.
One day, I happened to meet an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I was talking about how I was studying English, the foreigner seemed to be astonished gently shaking his head, shrugging his shoulders, saying, “You don’t say！”“You don’t say!” I was puzzled. I thought, perhaps this is not an appropriate topic. “Well, I’d better change the topic. ”So I said to him, “well, shall we talk about the Great Wall?” By the way, have you ever been there? “Certainly, everyone back home will laugh at me if I leave China without seeing it. It was magnificent（壮丽的）.” He was deep in thought when I began to talk like a tourist guide, “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world. We are proud of it.” Soon I was interrupted again by his order “You don’t say!” I couldn’t help asking .I said, “Didn’t you say you don’t say?” Hearing this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to explain, “You don’t say actually means really? It is an expression of surprise. Perhaps you don’t pay attention to English idioms.” Only then did I make a fool of myself. Since then I have been more careful with idiomatic expression.
1. A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms because.
A. English idioms were too difficult to master
B. I cared little about the teacher’s instruction
C. my teacher didn’t emphasize the importance
D. I had no interest in English learning
2. When I first heard “You don’t say!” I thought.
A. the Englishman was not interested in my English
B. the Englishman was only interested in the Great Wall.
C. I had talked too much
D. I had to stop talking at once
3. Which of the following is true?
A. The Englishman was leaving China without seeing the Great Wall.
B. The Englishman wanted to see the Great Wall after I talked about it.
C. The Englishman wanted me to act as his guide.
D. The Englishman visited the Great Wall and thought it worth visiting
4. After the Englishman explained the idiom, ___.
A. the Englishman made me a fool
B. the Englishman made a fool of himself
C. I felt very silly
D.I felt proud of my understanding

Thousands of people began pouring into Pennsylvania from other states. They wanted to buy lottery tickets. The tickets cost only $0．9 each ．But that small spending could bring them a reward of $90 million. That was the second largest lottery jackpot（积累奖金）in history.
More than 87 million tickets were bought for the Pennsylvania lottery drawing. Those who bought tickets had to choose seven numbers from 1 to 80. The chance of winning was one in 9．6 million. But that little chance certainly didn’t affect ticket sales. In the last few days before the drawing , tickets were selling at the unbelievable rate of 500 per second.
Experts say many people buy lottery tickets because they just want to have a piece of the action. Others say the lottery is a stock market for poor people. It allows them to dream about wealth they’ll probably never have.
But many people believe lotteries are no better than legalized gambling. Some critics note that most people who play are poor and may not be able to afford the tickets. There are also many addicts who take the game seriously. They may pour their life savings into lottery tickets. Some clubs have been formed to help them kick the habit.
Politicians like lotteries because they provide money that would otherwise have to some from new taxes. The profits from lotteries are usually used to pay for education or programs for senior citizens. But critics say this arrangement just allows states to legalize vice（恶习）, under the name of social progress. No matter whether you regard state lotteries right or not , you cannot refuse to accept their extreme popularity with many Americans.
1. The main idea of the passage is that．
A．lotteries are of great benefit to everyone who buys them
B．playing a lottery is just like investing in the stock market
C．a lot of people buy lottery tickets , but lotteries cause disagreement
D．lotteries are just legalized vice
2. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage ?
A．Politicians like lotteries because they don’t have to pay extra tax ．
B．The popularity of lotteries in America actually is social progress ．
C．Some critics don’t like lotteries because many poor people waste their money on them ．
D．People love the lottery because it is a stock market ．
3. In just one hour in the last few days , the Pennsylvania lottery sold tickets totaling．
A．$1．62 millionB．$90millionC．$9．6millionD．$87million
4. People who are addicted to playing lotteries should．
A．join a clubB．save every cent
C．win the PennsylvaniaD．kick the habit

Sydney Airport International Terminal -Arrival Area
SPECIALTY RETAIL STORES
Newslink: Two separate Newslink stores cater to all your reading needs including newspapers, magazines and the latest bestsellers.
Downtown Duty Free: Make sure you shop at Downtown Duty Free for great savings on a range of items including perfume, alcohol, skincare products and cigarettes. It's your last chance before customs.
Beach Culture: A must for those into the latest beach clothing. Top fashion labels including Mambo, Stussy and Quicksilver, including children's sizes.
DINING
Blue Sky Cafe: Speedy service leaves you time to keep an eye on the arrival gate. Fresh milk, coffee, lemon juice, beer, whisky, ice cream, soda water, cakes and dumplings are on sale.
MacDonald's: hamburgers, fries, pancakes, roasted potatoes, muffins, Pepsi, Coca-cola and chocolates-all your family favorites. Breakfast is served until 10:30.
SERVICES
ATM: ATMs are conveniently located throughout Arrivals and Departures. Dollars, pounds, francs and RMB are all accepted.
Vodafone Rentals: This communications center offers the very latest technology for mobile phone rentals, sales and serving.
1．Where is the passage likely to appear?
A．In a morning newspaper.B．In a monthly magazine.
C．In a geography book.D．In an official guidebook.
2．The underlined phrase "cater to" probably means _______.
A．satisfyB．affordC．supportD．help
3．According to the passage, you can draw ______ from ATMs.
A．dollars and yenB．pounds and RMB
C．RMB and rublesD．francs and euros
4．At Beach Culture you can probably buy _______.
A．newspapers and magazinesB．skincare products and cigarettes
C．adult cotton T-shirtsD．fresh juice and breakfast rolls

Our sense of hearing is one of the most important means of knowing what is going on around us. We are warned of danger by sounds. The sounds of music please us. Sound has a waste product, too, in the form of noise. Noise has been called unwanted sound. Noise is growing and it may get much worse before it gets any better.
Scientists, for several years, have been studying how noise affects people and animals and are alarmed by what they have learned.
Peace and quiet are becoming harder to find. Noise pollution is no joke. It is a threat that should be looked at carefully.
Sound is measured in units called decibels （分贝）. At a level of 140 decibels people feel pain in their ears.
Trucks, buses, motorcycles, airplanes, boats, and factories all make noise. This noise bothers not only our ears, but our minds and bodies as well.
There is a saying about "it is so noisy that you can't hear yourself think". Doctors who study noise believe that we must be able to hear ourselves think most of the time. If we don't, we may have headaches, other aches and pains, or even mental problems. Noise adds even more tension to a society which already faces too much stress.
1．The sense of hearing _______.
A．makes people feel angry
B．makes people want to dance
C．helps people to know what is happening around them
D．is something harmful to people
2．When sound is turned into noise, _______.
A．people become illB．it makes people forget the past
C．people don't know how to deal with it D．it becomes a kind of pollution
3．Why does the passage say " Peace and quiet are becoming harder to find " ?
A．Sounds of over 140 decibels are common these days.
B．There are always wars going on in the world.
C．The world is making more and more noise.
D．All kinds of machines make noises.
4．Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A．Scientists are warning people noise can be harmful.
B．It's possible for man to get rid of all noises.
C．Sounds under 140 decibels are not considered to be noise.
D．Society has become more lively because there is noise now.

To us it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains. But actually the umbrella was not invented as protection against the rain. Its first use was as a shade against the sun!
Nobody knows who first invented it, but the umbrella was used in very ancient times. Probably the first to use it were the Chinese, back in the eleventh century B.C.
We know that the umbrella was used in ancient Egypt and Babylon as a sunshade. And there was a strange thing connected with its use: it became a symbol of honor. In the Far East in ancient times, the umbrella was allowed to be used only by those in high office.
In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade. And the umbrella was in common used in ancient Greece. But it is believed that the first persons in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against the rain were the ancient Romans.
During the Middle Ages, the use of the umbrella practically disappeared. Then it appeared again in Italy in the late sixteenth century. And again it was considered as a symbol of power. By 1680, the umbrella appeared in France, and later on in England.
By the eighteenth century, the umbrella was used against rain throughout most of Europe. Umbrellas have not changed much in style during all this time, though they have become much lighter in weight. It wasn’t until the twentieth century that women’s umbrellas began to be made, in a whole variety of colours.
1. According to this passage, the umbrella was probably first invented in ancient _______.
A. China B. Egypt C. Greece D. Rome
2. Which of the following statements is not true about the umbrella?
A. No one exactly knows who was the inventor of the umbrella.
B. The umbrella was first invented to be used as protection against the sun.
C. The umbrella changed much in style in the eighteenth century.
D. In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade.
3. A strange feature(特征) of the umbrella’s use is that it was used as _______.
A. protection against rain B. a shade against the sun
C. a symbol of honour and power D. women’s decoration
4. In Europe, the umbrella was first used against the rain ___________.
A. during the Middle Ages B. by the eighteenth century C. in Rome D. in Greece